Rumi and poetry as a universal language: a bridge beyond all borders.
On the day Iran celebrates Rumi, the great thirteenth-century mystic, and the world celebrates Translation Day, let us rediscover the verses of a master who speaks to the heart of all humanity.
On September 30, Iran celebrates Jalal al-Din Rumi, a milestone in globally renowned mystical literature. A date that, in a deeply evocative way, coincides with the World Translation Day established by UNESCO.
This temporal overlap is far from coincidental: Rumi, who lived in the turbulent thirteenth century, left a literary and spiritual legacy that transcended all geographical, linguistic, and temporal barriers. Celebrating him on the day dedicated to translation means recognizing the universal value of his word, capable of travelling across the centuries to speak to the hearts of millions of people, confirming that great poets do not belong to a single people, but to all humanity.
The universal grammar of the soul
At the heart of Rumi's work is the idea of poetry as a universal grammar, a common language that allows different cultures to dialogue. In his verses—encapsulated in masterpieces such as Divan and Masnavi – love, pain, the search for meaning and the desire for union with the divine are not concepts exclusive to a single religion, but absolute human experiences.
His poetry thus becomes a space for intercultural encounters where differences vanish. Using simple metaphors and images drawn from everyday life, Rumi constructed an expressive code that anyone can decipher, demonstrating that, beyond languages and traditions, human beings share the same feelings and hopes.
A message of peace for today's world
In a current era marked by conflict, rigid boundaries, and misunderstanding, Rumi's voice resonates as a powerful call for brotherhood and unity. The Persian master reminds us that the labels that divide us are merely illusions, as these passages demonstrate. verses traditionally attributed to Rumi” , which seems to have been written to heal the wounds of today's world:
“What can I do, O believers? I do not know myself. I am not Christian, nor Jew, nor Zoroastrian, nor Muslim. I am not of the East, nor the West, nor of the earth, nor of the sea… I am not of nature, nor of the revolving heavens. My place is the Placeless, my trace is the Traceless. It is not the body and it is not the soul, for I belong to the Soul of the Beloved. I have banished duality, I have seen that the two worlds are one: One I seek, One I know, One I see, One I call.”
Translation: an act of welcome and mediation
In this context of profound unity, the literary translation It proves to be the fundamental instrument of cultural mediation: the only bridge capable of uniting classical Persian poetry with Italian readers.
Translating Rumi isn't just about transporting words from one dictionary to another, but faithfully recreating the musicality, rhythm, and spiritual intensity of the original texts to bring them closer to our sensibilities. Thanks to the translators' meticulous work, we readers can discover the richness of a seemingly distant, millennia-old culture.
The translation becomes like this an act of welcome which breaks down prejudices and allows two worlds, historically rich in art and thought, to speak to each other, understand each other, and shake hands.